State Reduces Welfare Rolls by 80% – How They Did It Probably Won’t Surprise You

Welfare reform is no stranger to the conservative agenda. So it should come as no surprise that Maine’s Governor Paul LePage signed a number of bills cracking down on who can receive state welfare benefits.

New requirements were instituted, making it mandatory for those who had previously been convicted of drug-crimes to undergo random drug testing. The most effective new rule will probably surprise you.

Governor LePage re-instituted a rule mandating that able-bodied adults with no dependents must either participate in job training, work 20 hours per week, or volunteer for just six hours a week. A seemingly mundane rule, however its effect has been profound.

The number of Maine’s food stamp recipients dropped by 80% – EIGHTY PERCENT. Draw your conclusions as you may, but this rule either caused those individuals to seek gainful employment or that they couldn’t be bothered to volunteer for just six hours a week.

LePage seems to understand that for society to work correctly, able-bodied people cannot be allowed to take something for nothing off the backs of tax payers. Despite this, the state’s progressive base is not happy, claiming that the decrease in recipients is CRUEL and INHUMANE.